Experimentation on the English Stage 1695-1708

At the beginning of the eighteenth century, British theatre saw a shift from what critics call 'Restoration' to 'sentimental' comedy. Focusing on the career of the Irish dramatist George Farquhar (1678-1707), this book argues that experimentation was the basis for this change. Introduction; Chapter 1 The London Theatre World in the 1690s; Chapter 2 Origins of ‘Humane Comedy’: Farquhar, Congreve, Cibber and Vanbrugh; Chapter 3 Experimentation at the Turn of the Century; Chapter 4 Successful Experimentation: The Recruiting Officer and the Beaux Stratagem; Chapter 5 Farquhar’s Contributions and the Post-1707 Theatre; Chapter 6 Conclusion;